The winning innovator will receive a $2,000 cash prize.

Vote for your favorite innovator!

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Tom Lynch As an entrepreneur with a passion for firearms, Tom Lynch leads Safe Gun Technology (SGTi) to advance safety features without compromising firearm reliability. Tom ‘s retrofit kit turns an AR-15 firearm into a fingerprint-access safe gun. The fingerprint scanner is located along the natural grip line, meaning the gun is instantaneously ready to fire, but only for those authorized. Law enforcement officers and gun owners are currently field-testing this prototype for reliability, as the company expands to include retrofit kits for shotguns and handguns.

Jonathan MossbergFollowing in the footsteps of one of the leading firearms manufacturers in the industry, Jonathan Mossberg founded iGun to take firearms safety into the 21st century. His fully functioning, endurance tested 12-gauge shotgun can only be fired when a user wears a special ring that unlocks the trigger when in close proximity. Law enforcement professionals have begun field-testing this technology and are giving it high marks. Stress tests put iGun in a league of its own—exceeding industry standards.

Kai KloepferWhat began as his sophomore year science fair project turned into the top engineering project by an American student at the 2013 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. Now, at only 18 years old, Kai is one of the world’s youngest innovators of smart gun technology. He is currently refining the seamless integration of an ultra-reliable fingerprint scanner into a Beretta pistol using 3-D printing and sophisticated engineering.

Will Murphy & Rob HarveyWill Murphy and Rob Harvey are on the front lines of gun violence every day as law enforcement officers. They’re using their real world experience to develop GunGuardian, a simple and keyless method of securing a firearm by restricting access to the trigger. Once a user enters a unique code or authorized fingerprint, the safety shield releases from the trigger and the firearm is ready to fire. It can attach to handguns and rifles and is specially designed to meet firearm reliability standards.

Omer Kiyani After a lengthy career in testing and optimizing safety features in the Detroit automotive industry, Omer Kiyani founded Sentinl, a company developing a fingerprint-access accessory that can fit any handgun. Once the sensor recognizes the fingerprint of an authorized user, it activates instantly and the gun is ready to fire. Built for reliability and speed, IDENTILOCK gives gun owners quick access to their firearm, while preventing accidental discharge.

Then vote for your favorite technology, below.

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RFID RFID (Radio-Frequency IDentification) uses radio waves to read and capture information stored on a token linked to an object, like a ring or watch. In most designs for RFID handguns, the unique token unlocks the trigger when held within a few inches of the firearm. When not in close proximity to the token, the firearm stays completely secure to prevent others—including children—from firing it.

FingerprintFingerprint access technology allows user-authentication to be instantaneous, effortless, and accurate. When an authorized user presses their finger to a fingerprint scanner, the scanner compares the print to its internal database, finds a match, and allows the user full access to the firearm. Unauthorized users cannot access the firearm.

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